Women's Bathing and Swimming Costume in the United States Part 4

The dresses described above appear peculiar not only to 20th century eyes, but they also seem to have amused mid-19th century correspondents.

One writer in 1857 declared that,

We don't think a man could identify his own wife when she comes out of the bathing-house. A plump figure enters, surrounded with a mult.i.tude of rustly flounces and scarcely able to squeeze an enormous hoop through the door. She is absent a few minutes, and presto change! out comes a tall lank apparition, wrapped in the scanty folds of something that looks more like a superannuated night-gown than anything else, and a battered straw-chapeau knocked down over the eyes, and stalks down towards the beach with the air and gait of a Tartar chieftain![40] [fig. 10.]

[40] "An Excursion to Long Branch," _Frank Leslie's Ill.u.s.trated Newspaper_ (August 22, 1857), vol. 4, no. 90, p. 182.

Another writer felt that he

... must say--even in the columns of _Frank Leslie's Ill.u.s.trated_--that they don't look very picturesque or pretty when _a la Naiade_.... Rather limp, sacks tied in the middle, eel-bottles, hydropathic coalheavers and "longsh.o.r.emen," and preternaturally dilapidated Bloomers, would appear to be the ideals aimed at.[41] [fig. 11.]

[41] Loc. cit. (footnote 18).

This use of the term "Bloomers," referring to long full drawers or trousers, is a reminder of how similar the 1855 bathing gown with drawers (see fig. 8) was to the reform dress introduced in 1848 and worn by Amelia Bloomer, the feminist, in 1852.

Despite the evident use of a new waistline treatment, the most popular bathing costume of the 1870s, according to _Harper's Bazar_, continued to feature the yoke blouse that reached at least to the knee. This combination of blouse and skirt was held in position at the waist by a belt. The high neck was finished with a sailor collar or a standing pleated frill, while the long sleeves and full Turkish trousers, b.u.t.toned on the side of the ankle, concealed the limbs. In 1873 a column on New York fas.h.i.+ons reported an effort to popularize short-sleeved, low-throated suits then in favor at European bathing places and which had been ill.u.s.trated in the _Bazar_. Nevertheless, the writer hedged this report by adding that

It is thought best, however, to provide an extra pair of long sleeves that may be b.u.t.toned on or basted in the short puffs that are sewn in the arm holes. Sometimes a small cape fastening closely about the throat is also added.[42]

[42] "New York Fas.h.i.+ons," _Harper's Bazar_ (July 19, 1873), vol. 6, no. 29, p. 451.

Nevertheless, sketches of bathing scenes from the seventies indicate that some American women wore even shorter sleeves and trousers than those prescribed by the fas.h.i.+on magazines.

Linen and wool fabrics were both suggested in the 1840s, but by the 1870s flannel was most frequently used for bathing dresses, with serge also being recommended. Navy blue, and to a lesser extent, white, gray, scarlet, and brown were popular colors in checks as well as solid colors trimmed with white, red, gray, or blue worsted braid.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 10.--"HOW SHE WENT IN," from _Harper's Bazar_, August 1870. (Smithsonian photo 61585A.)]

Bathing mantles or cloaks were worn to conceal the moist figure when crossing the beach. These garments were made of Turkish toweling with wide sleeves and hoods, and were so long as "to barely escape" the ground.

In 1873 one good bathing cap was described as an oiled silk bag-crown cap large enough to hold the hair loosely. The frill around the edge was bound with colored braid. Many ladies preferred, however, to let their hair hang loose and under a wide-brimmed hat of coa.r.s.e straw tied down on the sides to protect their skin from the sun (fig. 9).

Bathing shoes or slippers were generally worn when the sh.o.r.e was rough and uneven. In 1871 manila sandals were worn, but the most functional bathing shoes are said to have been high buskins of thick unbleached cotton duck with cork soles. They were secured with checked worsted braid. Two years later there were bathing shoes of white duck or sail canvas with manila soles. Slippers for walking in the sand were "mules"

or merely toes and soles made of flannel, braided to match the cloak, and sewn to cork soles.

Throughout this period the social aspect of bathing predominated over the therapeutic goals and women were making a greater effort to transform their bathing garments into attractive and functional outfits.

Motivated by the presence of men at the seash.o.r.e and by the compet.i.tion with other women for masculine attention, ladies were more concerned with the style of their bathing dresses and appropriate tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs. Thus bathing costume joined the ranks of other fas.h.i.+ons described in women's magazines.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 11.--"HOW SHE CAME OUT," from _Harper's Bazar_, August 1870. (Smithsonian photo 61585B.)]

Now that women were frolicking in the water rather than simply being dunked several times, their costume became somewhat more functional.

Long trousers gave them greater freedom in the water although the skirts which continued to be worn, tended to negate this improvement. Even as early as the 1870s there were efforts to shorten sleeves and eliminate high necklines. This trend to make bathing dress more practical increased in momentum toward the end of the century.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 12.--BATHING COSTUMES from a supplement to _The Tailor's Review_, July 1895.

(_Courtesy of Library of Congress._)]

PRINCESS STYLE BATHING DRESS

Although att.i.tudes toward sports were more enlightened by the 1880s, many women continued to wear the old bathing dress with its belted blouse extending to a long skirt and a pair of trousers. As an alternate to this garb, the "princess style" was developed with the blouse and trousers cut in one piece or else sewn permanently to the same belt. A separate skirt extending below the knee was b.u.t.toned at the waist to conceal the figure. This new style in bathing costume was probably derived from an innovation in women's underwear. During the late 1870s a new style of undergarment, the "combination" of chemise and drawers, had come into use. Petticoats could be fastened to b.u.t.tons sewn around the waist of the combination. This streamlining of undergarments helped the lady of fas.h.i.+on to maintain a desirably svelte figure. Apparently the advantages of this streamlining were obvious, because it was not long before women were quietly adapting this style to bathing dresses. By the 1890s the skirt was often omitted for swimming (fig. 12), giving the more active women more freedom in the water. Following popular dress styles, the top of the bathing costume was bloused over the belt. The sailor collar, either large or small, was a great favorite, but a straight standing collar with rows of white braid was also worn.

The "princess style" was not the only innovation available in bathing dress. _Harper's Bazar_ reported in 1881 that imported French bathing suits[43] for ladies were made without sleeves, since any covering on the arm interfered with the freedom desirable for swimming.

Nevertheless, according to other contemporary fas.h.i.+on descriptions, American bathing suits retained their long sleeves until the early 1880s when the foreign fas.h.i.+on of short sleeves came to the United States. In 1885 it was reported that

The sleeves may be the merest 'caps' four or five inches deep under the arm, curved narrow toward the top, and lapped there or they may be half-long and straight, reaching to the elbows, or else they may be the regular coat sleeves covering the arms to the wrist. With the short sleeves it is customary to add the sleeves cut from a gauze vest to give the arm some protection from the sun.[44]

[43] The term "bathing suit" as opposed to "bathing dress" came into use in the last quarter of the 19th century when the bifurcated bathing garment with a shorter skirt was widely accepted. The two terms, however, continued to be used interchangeably, with "bathing dress" appearing less frequently.

[44] "New York Fas.h.i.+ons," _Harper's Bazar_ (July 4, 1885), vol. 18, no. 27, p. 427.

Sleeves were pushed up in 1890 and puffed high about the shoulders by means of elastic tape in the hem. By 1893 fas.h.i.+on reports acknowledged that sleeve length was a matter of individual choice.

Despite this neat resolution of the diminis.h.i.+ng sleeve, contemporary sketches of bathing scenes indicate that some women in the United States were wearing the shorter sleeves even earlier.

Short full trousers, reaching just below the knee, accompanied by knee-length skirts--sometimes worn even shorter--succeeded the long Turkish trousers and ankle-length skirt. As the trousers diminished in length, long stockings or bathing shoes with long stocking tops became a necessary part of the bathing costume to cover the lower limbs, particularly in mixed bathing (see fig. 1). The stockings, which were cotton or wool, plain or fancy, and of any color or combination of colors in keeping with the costume, were worn with a variety of bathing shoes, sandals, or slippers when bathing off a rocky sh.o.r.e. Foot coverings were usually made of white canvas; the slippers were held on by a spiral arrangement of braid or ribbon about the ankles, while the laced shoes were often made with heavy cork soles. A gaiter shoe or combination shoe and stocking was made of waterproof cloth, laced up the sides, and reached to about the knees. Low rubber shoes were also worn.

Bathing caps of waxed linen or oiled silk were used to protect the hair.

They had whale bone in the brim and could be adjusted by drawstrings in the back. Blue, white, or ecru rubber hats were also used. These caps had large full crowns--which held in all the hair--and wired brims. A wide-brimmed rough straw hat, tied on with a strip of tr.i.m.m.i.n.g braid or with ribbon, was sometimes worn as protection against the sun (fig. 9).

Bathing mantles like those of the 1870s were still being worn by the late 19th century and these were frequently trimmed with colored braid.

Cotton tapes sewn in parallel rows, mohair braid, or strips of flannel were still being used to make the bathing dress more attractive.

Navy blue and white, as well as ecru, maroon, gray, and olive were popular colors for the bathing dress. In 1890 the writer of a fas.h.i.+on column thought it pertinent to add that "... black bathing suits are worn as a matter of choice, not merely by those dressing in mourning."[45] Apparently the wearing of black no longer had this exclusive significance when bathing, but prior to 1890 it did.

[45] Ibid. (July 5, 1890), vol. 23, no. 27, p. 523.

As women became more active in the water and were learning to swim they began to accept more practical changes in bathing costume. Not only the style, as described previously, but also the fabric was considered for its functional characteristics. Flannel was still widely used but was being replaced by serge which was not as heavy when wet. Another indication of this trend was that stockinet, a knitted material, was gaining in popularity at the end of the century.

The "princess style" of the early 1890s combined the drawers and bodice in one garment: the separate skirt fell just short of the ends of the drawers which covered the knees. By the mid-1890s, however, the drawers which were now called knickerbockers, were shortened so as to be completely covered by the knee-length skirt. These knickerbockers were either attached to the waist in the popular "princess style" or they were fastened to the waist by a series of flat bone b.u.t.tons.

During this same period, the mid-1890s, knitted, cotton tights were sometimes worn in place of knickerbockers. Bathing tights differed from the knickerbockers in that they were hemmed rather than gathered on an elastic band at the lower edge and that they were not attached to the waist. When tights were used they were completely concealed by a one-piece, knee-length bathing dress. The use of the more streamlined bathing tights was another step toward more functional bathing costume.

Despite these improvements, most women continued to wear stockings, usually black, when they bathed or swam in public. The dictates of fas.h.i.+on and standards of modesty continued to conflict with practical considerations.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 13.--BATHING DRESS OF BLACK "MOHAIR," c. 1900.

(Smithsonian photo 60383.)]

As with street dress, corsets seem to have been an important though unseen bathing article necessary for maintaining smart posture. In 1896 it was reported that

Unless a woman is very slender, bathing corsets should be worn.

If they are not laced tightly they are a help instead of a hindrance to swimming, and some support is needed for a figure that is accustomed to wearing stays.[46]

[46] Ibid. (June 13, 1896), vol. 29, no. 24, p. 503.

While describing the bathing dresses available in 1910 an article noted: "Some of these are made up with ... princess forms that are boned so as to do away with the bathing corset."[47]

[47] Ibid. (July 1910), vol. 43, no. 7, p. 552.

The bodice of the bathing costume continued to be bloused, but by 1905 it was modified to be merely loose. An article appearing in 1896 noted that bathing suits should be cut high in the neck, not tight around the throat, but close enough to prevent burning by the sun. The sailor collar continued to be used during the late 1890s but became less fas.h.i.+onable shortly after the turn of the century. Nevertheless there had to be some white around the neck for the bathing dress to be considered smart. The puffed sleeves, which had become popular in the late 1890s were modified in breadth and length to allow free use of the muscles in swimming (fig. 13).